At Pictory, we strive to provide the highest quality AI voices for your video content. Our voice provider, ElevenLabs, is retiring several older "Legacy" voice models to make room for faster, more realistic, and more stable alternatives. (https://help.elevenlabs.io/hc/en-us/articles/26928417254801-What-are-Legacy-voices)
As a result, the following voices are being deprecated and will eventually be removed from the platform.
Antony (Legacy) | Ethan (Legacy) | Nicole (Legacy) |
Antony | Ethan | Nicole |
Arnold (Legacy) | Freya | Patrick (Legacy) |
Arnold | Glinda (Legacy) | Patrick |
Clyde (Legacy) | Glinda | Rachel (Legacy) |
Clyde | James (Legacy) | Rachel |
Domi (Legacy) | James | Sam (Legacy) |
Domi | Jessie | Sam |
Dorothy (Legacy) | Joseph | Serena (Legacy) |
Dorothy | Josh | Serena |
Emily (Legacy) | Michael (Legacy) | Thomas (Legacy) |
Emily | Michael | Thomas |
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How do I know if my project is affected?
If you open a project that was created using a legacy voice, you will see the following notification:
"Your project uses a voice that’s no longer available. Please choose a new one. [Learn more]"
When this happens, Pictory will automatically remove the unavailable voice from your project settings so that you can select a modern replacement. If your project contained an Avatar using its default voice, we replace your old voice with a new voice, to preserve your avatar.
Identifying Deprecated Voices
To help you identify which voices need to be replaced, we have updated the interface in the following areas:
Audio Tab, Favorites & Recent: Affected voices will now display a "Deprecated" chip.
Brand Kits: Voices saved in your Brand Kit or Library that are no longer supported will also show the "Deprecated" label.
Disabled Actions: For all deprecated voices, the Preview, Apply, and Generate buttons will be unavailable.
How to update your project
If your project used a legacy voice, follow these simple steps to get it ready for export:
Open your project: You will see the deprecation popup.
Go to the Audio Tab: Navigate to the "Voiceover" section.
Select a New Voice: Browse our extensive library of AI voices.
Apply & Preview: Click "Apply" to generate the new voiceover for your scenes.
Update your Brand Kit: If you used a legacy voice as your default, go to Brand Kit > Edit to select a new default voice for all future projects.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is this happening? Technology moves fast! Our partners at ElevenLabs are moving toward more advanced AI models that offer better emotion and clarity. You can read more about their technical update here.
Will my exported videos be deleted? No. Any videos you have already downloaded or exported are safe and will not be affected. This change only impacts active projects currently inside the Pictory editor.
What happens to my minutes? If you need to re-generate a voiceover for a project due to this deprecation and are concerned about your minute usage, please reach out to our support team at [email protected] and we will be happy to assist you.
Can I still use the "Generated" voices? No, even if you had generated a voice over in the past using one of the deprecated voices, this can no longer be used in any capacity.
Summary of UI Changes for Users
Greyed-out buttons: You will no longer be able to click 'Apply' or 'Preview' on deprecated voices.
Visual Indicators: Look for the (Deprecated) text or chip next to voice names.
Automatic Removal: To prevent errors during rendering, Pictory removes the legacy voice from your storyboard automatically upon loading the project.